Glowing lambs born in Uruguay

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Photos:Glowing lambs born in Uruguay

Glowing lambs born in Uruguay – Scientists in Uruguay announced that they had genetically modified sheep such that the animals glow green in ultraviolet light.

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Photos:Glowing lambs born in Uruguay

Glowing lambs born in Uruguay – Researchers at Uruguay's Animal Reproduction Institute and the Pasteur Institute of Montevideo partnered in this endeavor. They say this is the first time in Latin America that transgenic sheep have been created.

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Photos:Glowing lambs born in Uruguay

Glowing lambs born in Uruguay – Scientists used the gene of a jellyfish that produces a protein associated with a green fluorescent color in that species. They produced sheep embryos using in vitro fertilization and then injected the embryos with the jellyfish gene.

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Photos:Glowing lambs born in Uruguay

Glowing lambs born in Uruguay – In total, nine lambs were born with this genetic modification. They are now 6 months old and in perfect condition, researchers said. These lambs look like regular lambs except that they glow when exposed to ultraviolet light, the scientists said.

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Photos:Glowing lambs born in Uruguay

Glowing lambs born in Uruguay – Now that this technology has been shown to be successful in Uruguay, it can be used for other genes of interest to scientists and to human health, researchers said.